The civil lease has become one of the new points of tension in the rental market in large cities. Originally designed for specific situations (secondary residence, company accommodation or rental to a company) this contract is today sometimes used for circumvent the very protective rules of the law of July 6, 1989 and rent control. “If the property made available is intended to be used as a dwelling and as a principal residence, the law of July 6, 1989 is intended to apply”recalls Louis du Merle, legal director of ANIL (National Agency for Housing Information).
Faced with these abuses, the Directorate General for Competition, Consumer Affairs and Fraud Control (DGCCRF) has decided to strengthen its controls in 2026. ” There DGCCRF has in fact been alerted by elected officials, and by the press, of a practice which would consist of abusively resorting to civil leases as a means of circumventing rent controls.explains the administration to Capital.fr. And the consequences can be serious : reimbursement of excess rent collected, cancellation of leave, damages, even administrative and criminal sanctions.
When the civil lease becomes illegal
However, the use of civil lease is not prohibited. This type of contract remains perfectly legal in certain very specific situations: second home, company accommodation or rental granted to a legal entity, for example.
But the legal boundary becomes very clear once the accommodation constitutes the tenant’s main residence. Indeed, if the property made available is intended to be used as a dwelling and as a main residence, the law of July 6, 1989 applies. In other words, even if the signed contract explicitly mentions a civil lease and excludes the application of the 1989 law, this is not enough to protect the lessor. “ If the occupant contests this qualification, he can refer the matter to the judicial judge.which has the possibility of reclassifying the contract »explains Louis du Merle.
The legal director of ANIL also recalls that the courts have already reclassified numerous contracts in recent years when the character of main residence was established.
The clues that now attract the attention of the DGCCRF
To detect abuse, the DGCCRF now targets rental advertisements distributed by professionals real estateboth in agencies and on online platforms or social networks. “The controls relate to rental advertisements distributed by professionals in areas where rent control applies”specifies the administration.
Thus, several elements can suggest that a home actually serves as a main residence: an occupation exceeding eight months per yearthe tenant’s tax declaration at this address, energy bills, an employer certificate or even the absence of a truly temporary nature of the stay. The DGCCRF, however, remains cautious about its exact control methods: “As the investigation is ongoing, we will unfortunately not have any further details to provide you. »
Potentially very heavy financial penalties
The main risk for the owner remains the judicial reclassification of the civil lease into a classic residential lease subject to the 1989 law. And the consequences can be extremely costly. “The financial impact for the lessor will of course be the recalculations of rent »underlines Louis du Merle. In a city subject to rent control, an owner who rented a Parisian apartment for 1,200 euros under a civil lease when the authorized ceiling was 950 euros could have to repay 250 euros per month, or 3,000 euros per year and up to 9,000 euros over three years. But that’s not all.
A requalification can also lead to the cancellation of illegally issued leave, damages, or even the calling into question of certain clauses of the contract. Louis du Merle particularly mentions situations where “the lessor issued notice without respecting either the forms or the deadlines provided for by the 1989 law”. “The judge then considered that the leave was null and void”he specifies.
Fines which can climb up to 300,000 euros
The DGCCRF also confirms that certain behaviors may fall under consumer law and misleading commercial practices.. “The proposal for a civil lease for a property intended to serve as a main residence may constitute a lack of pre-contractual information punishable by an administrative fine”explains the administration. The amount can reach 3,000 euros for a natural person and 15,000 euros for a legal entity.
But the sanctions can become much more severe if the professional actively participates in the disputed arrangement. “This practice could be seen as misleading, punishable by maximum fine of 300,000 euros and two years of imprisonment »warns the DGCCRF. The administration nevertheless specifies that “the sanctions imposed are always proportionate to the seriousness of the breaches observed”.
Other montages are also monitored
The civil lease is not the only contract used to circumvent the classic rental rules. Louis du Merle recalls that some owners also misuse the mobility lease, created by the ELAN law of 2018. Initially designed for temporary audiences (students, employees on mission or seasonal workers) this contract is sometimes used outside its legal framework. “In the Basque Country, some landlords have started to use mobility leases even though they were not targeting eligible groups”he explains. Other strategy observed: rent the accommodation to a company rather than to an individual in order to escape the 1989 law. “When the tenant is a legal entity, the 1989 law does not apply”recalls the legal director of ANIL.
What are landlords really risking today?
In fact, there are still relatively few disputes. Many tenants hesitate to take legal action for fear of tensions with their landlord or long and anxiety-provoking procedures. “Recourse to the judge always arouses a little apprehension”recognizes Louis du Merle. But the strengthening of DGCCRF controls could change the situation, particularly in large cities where rents remain particularly high. And for owners who today use a civil lease in a questionable manner, the financial risk is now becoming very real.
